JP2004147105A - Terminal equipment for video phone - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate inconvenience caused by displaying the picture of the opposite party of communication, multimedia information and an input picture divided into a plurality of areas on a single display. <P>SOLUTION: Three displays 1, 2 and 3 are arranged vertically on the front surface of equipment to respectively display the picture of the face of the opposite party of communication on the display 1, the multimedia information on the display 2 and the input picture on the display 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a remote facing terminal device used in a system for transmitting and receiving information by operating a terminal device between remote locations.
[0002]
[Prior art]
[Patent Document 1] "JP-A-7-87210"
As a system in which an operator or the like operates a terminal device to exchange information between two or more remote locations, there is a system disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example.
In this system, remote terminal devices are connected by a broadband ISDN (communication line), and the voice and image information of the communication partner and multimedia information such as text, illustration, graph, still image, and moving image are communicated by two-way communication. While transmitting and receiving each other, the information is displayed on each display, and various necessary processes can be performed while a conversation is being performed.
[0003]
In this case, regarding the character information and image information, the screen of the other party can be shared between the terminal apparatuses, and the image of the other party taken by the camera of one terminal apparatus can be displayed on the display of the other terminal apparatus. However, at this time, it is often the case that such character information and image information are divided into a plurality of areas on each display and simultaneously displayed.
[0004]
In addition, some terminal devices such as automated devices used by financial institutions are operated by customers. In such a terminal device, a display having a touch panel is provided, and an input screen is displayed on this display. Input operation.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, according to the above-described conventional technology, when an image of a communication partner, multimedia information, and an input screen are displayed at the same time, they are displayed on a single display in a plurality of areas, so that the size of each area is reduced. However, there is a problem that each area becomes indistinguishable, causing inconvenience.
[0006]
For example, the appearance of the image of the communication partner cannot be grasped well, and the information to be given at once for multimedia information is limited, and the size of keys on the input screen becomes small, making operation difficult.
The present invention realizes a remote meeting terminal device that can solve such a problem.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
Therefore, the present invention provides a method for connecting to a remote terminal device as a communication partner, displaying multimedia information, an input screen, and an image of the communication partner sent from the terminal device on a display, and displaying the terminal device. And a remote facing terminal device that performs various processes while transmitting and receiving information, comprising a plurality of displays, and displaying the image of the communication partner, multimedia information, and an input screen separately on the plurality of displays. And
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a remote meeting terminal device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the embodiment.
In the figure, 1 is a display for displaying an image (mainly a face) of a communication partner, 2 is a display for displaying multimedia information such as a text, a still image, and a moving image, and 3 is a display for performing an input operation. Can input information by pressing a key part defined by letters, numbers or symbols with keys etc. It is possible to input information such as characters, symbols and line drawings by touch panel or touch pen An input panel is provided, and these three displays 1 to 3 are provided at the upper front of the apparatus.
[0009]
Reference numeral 6 denotes a hand-held camera (video camera) that shoots the hand of the device operator, 7 denotes a face-to-face camera (video camera) that shoots the face of the device operator from the front, and the hand-held camera 6 is installed above the display 1. The facing camera 7 is provided at an intermediate position between the display 1 and the display 2.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the embodiment.
[0010]
In the figure, reference numeral 4 denotes a control unit (control means) for controlling the entire apparatus, and 5 denotes a multimedia communication control apparatus, both of which are provided in the apparatus.
Reference numeral 8 denotes a speaker for outputting a voice of a communication partner, and reference numeral 9 denotes a microphone for inputting a voice of an operator of the device 4, which is provided at a predetermined position of the device.
Here, the display 2, the display 3, and the handheld camera 6 are connected to the control unit 4, and the control unit 4 displays multimedia information on the display 2 and guides the display 3 to perform an input operation using a touch panel. And keys are displayed, and control is performed so that the camera 6 at hand also captures the hand of the operator of the device 4.
[0011]
The display 1, the facing camera 7, the speaker 8 and the microphone 9 are connected to the multimedia communication control device 5, and the multimedia communication control device 5 is connected via a communication line under the control of the control unit 4. The image information captured by the facing camera 7 and the voice information input from the microphone 9 are transmitted to a remote terminal device (the partner terminal device), and the image received from the partner terminal device is displayed on the display 1. In addition, it outputs the voice received from the partner device from the speaker 8 and has a function of a TV phone.
[0012]
The display of the image on the display 1 is performed at the timing of connection with the partner terminal device. However, if any information is displayed before the connection with the partner terminal device, the image is not necessarily displayed at the connection timing. Instead, the image is displayed after the information has been displayed.
The multimedia communication control device 5 is also provided with an instruction for adjusting the sound volume and image quality from the control unit 4.
[0013]
Further, the multimedia information displayed on the display 2 is controlled by the control unit 4, but can be displayed under the control of the partner terminal device.
The order of arrangement of the three displays 1 to 3 is not particularly limited, but as shown in FIG. 1, a display 1 for displaying images of a communication partner in order from the top, a display for displaying multimedia information. 2. It is desirable to arrange a display 3 for performing an input operation.
[0014]
The remote facing terminal device having such a configuration is connected to at least one remote terminal device installed at a remote place via a communication line.
This remote terminal does not need to be equipped with three displays unlike the remote facing terminal, but if it is equipped with three displays, the same display as the remote facing terminal can be performed.
[0015]
In addition, it is assumed that the other terminal device also includes devices other than the display, that is, a control unit, a multimedia communication control device, a handheld camera, a facing camera, a speaker, and a microphone.
Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.
First, when the remote facing terminal device is connected to the other terminal device via the communication line, the facing camera of the other terminal device captures an image on the display 1 by the multimedia communication control device 5 under the control of the control section 4. The image is displayed.
[0016]
Since a communication partner who normally operates the partner terminal device is sitting in front of the partner terminal device, an image of the communication partner is displayed on the display 1.
At this time, the image of the communication partner can mainly display the face portion in a large size. Various multimedia information necessary for the progress of the process with the communication partner is controlled and displayed on the display 2 by a program based on an instruction from the control unit 4.
[0017]
The multimedia information varies depending on the type of processing to be performed. In addition to text information, information such as illustrations, graphs, still images, and moving images are displayed as needed.
Further, the same information may be displayed by sharing an application with a partner terminal device.
When an input is required by the control unit 4, a selection key, a numeric keypad, and the like are displayed on the display 3. By pressing these keys with a finger on the touch panel, information defined by the keys can be input. .
[0018]
If the input panel is for a touch pen, it is also possible to input information such as characters, symbols, and line drawings.
This input information is sent to the control unit 4, displayed on the display 3 as needed, and stored in a memory (not shown).
It is also possible to send it to the other terminal device through the multimedia communication control device 5 and display it on its display.
[0019]
The speaker 8 outputs the voice of the operator of the partner terminal device received by the multimedia communication control device 5, and also outputs voice guidance and music under the control of the control unit 4 based on the program.
The voice of the operator of the remote meeting terminal device is captured by the microphone 9, and the voice information is transmitted to the partner terminal device through the multimedia communication control device 5, thereby being output from the speaker of the partner terminal device.
[0020]
The hand-held camera 6 and the facing camera 7 capture the hand and face of the operator of the remote facing terminal device, respectively, and transmit the image information to the partner terminal device through the multimedia communication control device 5 so that Is displayed on the display of the local terminal device.
Therefore, in this remote facing terminal device, the operator looks at the face of the communication partner displayed on the display 1, the multimedia information displayed on the display 1, and talks with the communication partner via the speaker 8 and the microphone 9. And input information on the display 3 to execute necessary processing.
[0021]
By attaching a handset or the like (not shown), the handset or the like can have a conversation with an operator of the partner terminal device.
According to the first embodiment described above, since three displays are provided and the image of the face of the communication partner, the multimedia information, and the input screen are separately displayed, the display can be enlarged. This makes it easier for the operator to identify the displayed contents and also makes the operation easier, so that the image of the communication partner, the multimedia information, and the input screen can be divided into a plurality of areas on one display and displayed. The effect that the inconvenience which arises can be eliminated is acquired.
[0022]
In addition, since the image of the face of the communication partner is displayed on the entire screen of one display, it is possible to obtain an effect that the operation can be performed with a feeling close to actually facing the user.
Furthermore, if the three displays are arranged vertically and used as a display for displaying a face image of a communication partner in order from the top, a display for displaying multimedia information, and a display for displaying an input screen, When proceeding with various processes in a face-to-face manner, a state similar to the field of view moving in front of the eyes can be realized, so that more realistic operability can be realized.
[0023]
FIG. 3 shows the second embodiment, in which the number of displays is two and the displays are arranged vertically.
In this embodiment, the upper display 10 is a display for displaying an image and information of the face of the operator of the partner terminal device, and the lower display 11 is a display for performing an input operation. Displays the image of the face of the communication partner and the information side by side as shown in FIG. 7A, or displays the image of the face of the communication partner and information side by side as shown in FIG. Shall do.
[0024]
The transmission and reception and display of information with the communication partner are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.
In the second embodiment as described above, two displays are provided to separately display the image of the face of the communication partner and the multimedia information, and the input screen. Although the size of the image of the communication partner's face and the multimedia information are reduced by half, the image of the communication partner and the multimedia information and the input screen are divided into a plurality of areas on one display and displayed. This makes it easier for the operator to identify the displayed contents and facilitates the operation, so that the image of the communication partner, the multimedia information, and the input screen can be displayed in a plurality of areas on one display. The advantage is that the inconvenience caused by displaying the information in a divided manner can be eliminated.
[0025]
In addition, since the display that displays the image of the face of the communication partner is above the display that performs the input operation, a state similar to the field of view in front of you can be realized when actually performing various processes face-to-face. , More realistic operability can be realized.
As an example of the use of the above-described first and second embodiments, the present invention can be used as a substitute for a window service of a financial institution or the like.
[0026]
For example, the remote meeting terminal device is installed in an unmanned store or the like as a device for the customer to operate, and the device operated by the operator of the financial institution is installed in a remote centralized center or the like, and the operator responds to the customer. As a result, even between remote locations, the customer can perform various application procedures and consultations as if the operator of the financial institution were in front of him.
[0027]
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen of the display 3 or 11 in this case. Here, the amount input screen is shown.
In this case, since the amount input screen can be displayed on the entire screen of the display 3 or 11, the customer can easily perform the input operation.
In addition, a kiosk terminal or the like can be supported.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of displays are provided, and the image of the face of the communication partner, the multimedia information, and the input screen are displayed separately, so that each display can be enlarged. This makes it easier for the operator to identify the displayed contents and also makes the operation easier, so that the image of the communication partner, the multimedia information, and the input screen can be divided into a plurality of areas on one display and displayed. The effect that the inconvenience which arises can be eliminated is acquired.
[Brief description of the drawings]
1 is a perspective view showing a first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a first embodiment; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a second embodiment; FIG. Figure [Explanation of symbols]
Reference Signs List 1 display 2 display 3 display 4 control unit 5 multimedia communication control device 6 handheld camera 7 face-to-face camera 8 speaker 9 microphone 10 display 11 display

Claims (7)

Connects to a remote terminal device as a communication partner, displays multimedia information, an input screen, and an image of the communication partner sent from the terminal device on a display, and exchanges information with the terminal device. In the remote facing terminal device that performs various processing while
A remote face-to-face terminal device comprising a plurality of displays, wherein the plurality of displays separately display the image of the communication partner, multimedia information, and an input screen. In claim 1,
As the plurality of displays, three displays are provided,
A remote face-to-face terminal device, wherein the image of the communication partner, the multimedia information, and the input screen are separately displayed on the three displays. In claim 2,
A remote face-to-face terminal, wherein the three displays are arranged vertically and a display for displaying an image of a face of a communication partner in order from the top, a display for displaying multimedia information, and a display for displaying an input screen. apparatus. In claim 1,
The display device includes two displays as the plurality of displays,
A remote facing terminal device, wherein one of the two displays is a display for displaying the image and multimedia information of the communication partner, and the other is a display for displaying an input screen. In claim 4,
A remote facing terminal device, wherein the two displays are arranged vertically, and a display for displaying an image and multimedia information of the communication partner is on the upper side, and a display for displaying an input screen is on a lower side. In claim 5,
A remote face-to-face terminal device, wherein an image of the communication partner and multimedia information are displayed side by side on an upper display. In claim 5,
A remote face-to-face terminal device, wherein an image of the communication partner and multimedia information are displayed side by side on the upper display.

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